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| No. 510 | BAHA’I YEAR 130 | SEPTEMBER, 1973 |
Ecuador Opens Radio Station
Elizabeth and Charles Greenleaf
Rebuilding an Island Tradition
| CONTENTS |
National Assembly former in Equatorial Guinea | 3 |
International Teaching Centre meets | 3 |
Radio station opens in Ecuador | 5 |
The Greenleafs: an eternal union | 8 |
Rebuilding an island tradition | 10 |
The Great Safari | 16 |
Illuminated Tablet presented to college | 19 |
Around the World | 20 |
| CORRECTIONS |
In an item on an Indian art show in Southern Nevada on page 21 of the August 1973 edition, the name of painter Mr. David Villaseñor was improperly spelled. On page 22 of the same issue, the item title Northampton, Maine, should read Northampton, Massachusetts.
| COVER PHOTO |
Reed flutes and songfest at Vagabundo Convention in Ecuador, during March 1969.
BAHÁ’Í NEWS is published for circulation among Bahá’ís only by the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States, as a news organ reporting current activities of the Bahá’í world community.
BAHÁ’Í NEWS is edited by an annually appointed Editorial Committee.
Material must be received by the twenty-fifth of the second month preceding date of issue. Address: Bahá’í News Editorial Office, 112 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, Illinois 60091, U.S.A.
Change of address should be reported directly to Membership and Records, National Bahá’í Center. 112 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, Illinois. U.S.A. 60091.
[Page 3]
First meeting of the International Teaching Centre, Bahjí, June 14, 1973. Hands of the Cause of God: Amatu’l-Bahá Rúḥíyyih Khánum, ‘Alí Akbar Furútan, Paul E. Haney, Abúl-Qásim Faizí. Counsellor members: Hooper Dunbar, Florence Mayberry and ‘Aziz Yazdí.
International Teaching Centre meets[edit]
The inaugural meeting of the International Teaching Centre took place on June 14, 1973, when the Hands of the Cause of God in the Holy Land, ‘Amatu’l-Bahá Rúḥíyyih Khánum, ‘Alí Akbar Furútan, Paul Haney and Abú’l-Qásim Faizí, and the three Counsellor members, Hooper Dunbar, Florence Mayberry and ‘Azíz Yazdí were invited by The Universal House of Justice to accompany all members to the Most Holy Shrine for prayers. Following this a meeting was held in the Pilgrim House adjacent to the Shrine, where the terms of reference and general duties of the International Teaching Centre were discussed.
Other meetings of the International Teaching Centre took place during the week that followed. The Counsellor members are now transferring their residence to the Holy Land and will settle there as soon as possible.
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National Assembly Formed in Equatorial Guinea The following cablegram, from The Universal House of Justice was received on July 17, 1973: “DELIGHTED ANNOUNCE SUCCESSFUL ELECTION NATIONAL SPIRITUAL ASSEMBLY EQUATORIAL GUINEA COUNTRY OPENED FAITH GUARDIAN’S TEN YEAR CRUSADE. NEW ASSEMBLY FORMED NOW RESPONSE REQUIREMENT GOVERNMENT RECOGNITION FAITH. PRAYERS OFFERED HOLY SHRINES THANKSGIVING AND GUIDANCE ASSISTANCE FRIENDS NEWLY INDEPENDENT COMMUNITY.” UNIVERSAL HOUSE OF JUSTICE |
Small commercial radio station converted to Bahá’í use in Ecuadorian Andes[edit]
Radio Turismo in Otavalo, Ecuador, is the first Bahá’í radio station in the world. It is a small, low-power, short-wave station that still can only broadcast a few score miles among the cliffs and quiet valleys of the Andean highlands of central Ecuador. Radio Turismo was leased six months ago by the National Spiritual Assembly of Ecuador, and presently manages a modest five hours of Bahá’í programming per day. Only three Bahá’ís work regularly with the station, but already, with what might be considered customary Bahá’í optimism, the believers of Ecuador are projecting their preliminary enterprise into the future, and into the world at large, where they envisage someday operating a powerful international production and broadcasting complex. This fledgling communications venture was predicated by the growing need to deepen a community of Bahá’ís that has multiplied itself enormously in a mere handful of years. It would probably not be an exaggeration to say that the achievements of this pioneering effort will be watched closely by many National Spiritual Assemblies to determine whether it is time for others also to turn another corner in the use of media for Bahá’í proclamation and deepening.
Ecuador is the second smallest republic in South America. Its 104,510 square miles of territory (Colorado size) is larger only than Guyana (34,740 square miles). The broad, immense spine of the Andes mountains cuts across the country on its crushing journey to the continent’s southern extremity. The famed Mount Chimborazo, whose snow-capped peak halts its skyward climb at 20,574 feet, is the tallest in Ecuador. Thirty still-active volcanoes are strewn along the nation’s mountain corridor. Most of the nation’s Indian Bahá’ís live in the highlands of this formidable range, and are descended from Indian empires thousands of years old. East of the Andes region is the forested Oriente, which contains more than half of Ecuador’s land mass. This vast, mineral-rich expanse of rain and tropical forest conceals the headwaters of the Amazon River. And to the west of the Andes corridor are the coastal lowlands, where many of the Bahá’ís of African descent reside. The people of this coastal region are employed in making Ecuador the world’s principal producer and exporter of bananas.
More than 60 percent of the country’s four-and-a-half million people are Indians. About 30 percent are of mixed Indian and Spanish ancestry, a handful are black, and not more than 15 percent are white. The nation’s official language is Spanish. However, most of the Indian peoples use Quechua as well, and it is estimated that at least 20 percent of the population speaks Quechua exclusively. In the forest regions east of the
[Page 5]
Andes the Jíbaro language is spoken by the predominantly Indian population of the tropical forests.
The first National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Ecuador was elected in 1961. The Hand of the Cause of God, Mr. Hasan Balyuzi, represented the Hands of the Cause at the first national convention. The delegates represented Bahá’ís in just four centers: Guayaquil, Cuenca, Otavalo, and Quito. Mr. Balyuzi spoke to the friends about the soul-searching prayer and consultation of the Hands of the Cause in making the great decisions leading to the completion of the Ten Year Crusade and the impending first election of The Universal House of Justice.
By 1969 the Indian teaching work in the highlands had accelerated to the point where the National Spiritual Assembly issued an urgent appeal to Spanish-speaking believers to assist with the formation of 57 all-Indian Local Assemblies during Riḍván. These early accomplishments in mass teaching centered around Otavalo, a busy village of 20,000 inhabitants located 70 miles north of Quito, the nation’s capital. The Otavaleños, a pre-Inca tribe, have a thousand-year heritage as farmer-artisans. A number of exploratory teaching ventures into nearby towns and villages by experienced Otavalo Indian teachers soon demonstrated that enrollments could be achieved throughout the Andean region, where more than three million Indians live in much the same manner as their ancestors before the advent of the Spanish conquerors. Teaching expeditions during 1969 opened three new provinces and introduced six new Indian tribes to the Bahá’í Cause. As a consequence of the teaching achievements in Ecuador through 1969 the National Spiritual Assembly established a goal of 9000 new believers to be enrolled by August, 1970.
Events in Ecuador in 1971 demonstrated the potential widespread attraction of the Bahá’í Faith. On a visit to Otavalo, Mr. Jose Lucas, a resident of the coastal city of Esmeraldas, an important banana loading port, became attracted to the Teachings of Bahá’u’lláh. When his sojourn in Otavalo ended he began to teach in Esmeraldas, among descendants of a 16th century storm-wrecked slaveship, who inhabit the land around that seaport. Shortly, more than 2,000 believers of African descent were enlisted on the coast, and many hundred more who had migrated to towns in the Andean highlands.
The impressive advances in the teaching work soon required that more effective deepening instruments be developed to keep pace with the quickening tempo of enrollments. There were simply an insufficient number of deepened believers to travel from village to village and region to region training and inspiring the growing
A view of a small village farm in the Andean highlands of Ecuador.
[Page 6]
Maria Perugachi (right), a traveling teacher, records a Bahá’í program in Quéchua. Alfonso Tulcanazo (left) operates the tape recorders.
Indian Bahá’ís listening to the regular daily Bahá’í broadcasts.
Many of the Bahá’ís who have participated in the radio program are shown above. The photograph was taken at the Amatu’l-Bahá Rúḥíyyih Khánum Bahá’í Institute in Otavalo. Continental Counsellor Raul Pavón is on the left, and Auxiliary Board member Rufino Gualavisí is third from the right.
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‘The radio not only has the power to change mankind’s receptivity, but also to maintain contact and deepen isolated communities’. |
multitude of new adherents. Confronted with this pressing need to deepen new Bahá’ís, the National Spiritual Assembly chose to pursue its historic action of leasing the first radio station for Bahá’í teaching and consolidation.
A financially ailing short-wave radio station in Otavalo, the heartland of the early mass teaching work, was chosen for this new communications enterprise. The rental fees for the station are approximately $150 per month; a price which includes the services of two station announcers and one electrician. Bahá’í programs are transmitted between 5:30 and 7:30 am, when the Bahá’ís are preparing to leave their homes for work; and again from 4:30 until 7:30 pm, after their return home. Continental Counsellor, Raul Pavón, who, with his parents, has worked among the Indian Bahá’ís for many years, his wife Clementina de Pavón, and Ralph Dexter, a Canadian believer, translate Bahá’í writings into Quéchua, and prepare the programs for broadcast. During the rest of the day ratio time is allocated to commercial and cultural programming in Spanish.
Mr. Pavón recently corresponded with Bahá’í News about highlights of the Ecuadorian broadcasting activities.
“The first Bahá’í program was on March 1, 1973, at 5:30 am,” Mr. Pavón explained. “At that moment, as the sun began to break through the majestic peaks of the Andes, numerous friends in the cities as well as the country heard for the first time a program which, with the passing days, became a familiar friend.”
The name of that first program was En Horas de Amanecer, or The Dawning. The program announced the new day of God and spoke of the need to live a life of justice. It assured the audience that God, the Creator, had not forsaken humanity. The public reaction to these Bahá’í programs was reportedly very favorable. They often caught the attention of people who were known to have been closed to the idea of a new religion and a new Revelation. To the Bahá’ís it unfolded a vision of the widespread use of the radio as a powerful teaching instrument, according to Mr. Pavón.
At this time the radio station can reach only homes in the principal mass conversion areas in the region surrounding Otavalo. Mr. Pavón said the question of expanding the reach of the station to encompass the coastal area around Esmeraldas is under consideration by the National Assembly of Ecuador.
“The teaching done on the radio is both direct and indirect,” he said. “The programs of direct teaching include adaptations of ‘Bahá’u’lláh and the New Era’, ‘The Divine Art of Living’, ‘The New Garden’, as well as adaptations of introductory pamphlets about the Bahá’í Faith and compilations and notes from ‘The Dawn-Breakers’. For the most part the programs are bi-lingual: they are broadcast in Quéchua and Spanish. In the near future programs of indirect teaching, including children’s classes and cultural presentations will be aired. Cultural programming being prepared will give the friends a view of their country and the world, describing the make-up of the family of man, complemented by historical notes from a Bahá’í perspective.”
In addition to the programs broadcast by Radio Turismo the National Spiritual Assembly has leased time on several local and national radio stations to cover the entire northern and central parts of the country during prime listening time. “The programs go on the air at dawn, just before the rural believer begins his daily work, and again in the evening, when he returns home,” Mr. Pavón explained. “The programs consist of short passages from the Teachings, intercalated between non-Bahá’í traditional Indian and Ecuadorian melodies. In other special programs readings and explanations of Bahá’í writings are alternated with songs recorded by the Bahá’í Chorus of Ecuador.”
Although it is too soon to tell what the real effect of this radio experiment will be, Mr. Pavón said it is proving to be very effective in giving support to the ‘Amatu’l-Bahá Bahá’í Institute in Otavalo and to the sacrificial efforts of the traveling teachers. But there is certainly no lack of ambition in this undertaking. Mr. Pavón concluded his correspondence by saying: “The friends are convinced of the effectiveness of this method of teaching the Faith and believe that the ideal thing would be to have a Bahá’í radio station, located possibly in Otavalo, 20 miles from the equator, which would broadcast the message of Bahá’u’lláh to the four corners of Ecuador, America, and the World.”
In another piece of correspondence, Ralph Dexter, a member of the National Assembly who has worked closely with the radio station, said the programs are helping prepare villagers to accept the Faith. When teachers arrive in communities where people have listened to the programs they find a much more receptive audience than they would have otherwise. “The radio not only has this power to change mankind’s receptivity but also to maintain contact and deepen isolated communities as well as the easily accessible ones,” he wrote. “It is especially influential in countries like Ecuador where, unlike the United States, there is no excess of mass media. Here the radio is the only means of communication in most rural areas and is listened to quite diligently by all and is therefore a very effective instrument for teaching.”
According to the United Nations Statistical Yearbook for 1971, there are almost two million radios in Ecuador, or approximately one for every two people. On the other hand, there are only 150,000 television sets, and these are confined almost exclusively to major urban centers. There are twenty-five daily newspapers, but their combined circulation is only 250,000 copies. The abundance of radio receivers in Ecuador corresponds with a trend in developing nations noted by the United Nations since the advent of the Transistor. While distribution rates are still low in Africa, where Zaire has only four sets per thousand people and Egypt has 132, in Latin America the figures are much higher.
Argentina boasts 370 sets per thousand, and Ecuador almost 400 per thousand. According to the UN study, listening figures are always higher than ownership figures, since in many areas (such as Indian villages) group listening is still very common. “Few people in the world are still as isolated as they were,” the study concludes.
The Greenleafs: an eternal union[edit]
by Emeric Sala
Elizabeth and Charles Greenleaf were from the midwest and were members of that group which began with Thornton Chase in the latter years of the 1890’s in Chicago. The group was led by Dr. Ibráhím Khayr’ulláh, sent by the Master to America to teach and nurture those interested in the Faith. It was an explosive moment of great spiritual impact, gathering its forces from the first public mention of the Name of Bahá’u’lláh in America at the time of the Chicago Exposition in 1893.
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We must learn to live in the light, to bring all our plans to the source of light. |
Elizabeth, speaking of those days, would tell of a dream experienced by a student of Oriental religions—it was a time of visions and dreams. The student dreamed that he was standing on the shore of Lake Michigan and saw far on the horizon a great sailing ship being swept by a swift wind towards the shore. As it grew near, a great new sail was unfurled from the mast, with a strange symbol inscribed in huge markings on it. When the student awoke, he wrote down this inscription and asked his professor to translate it. This the professor could not do, but advised him to go to one, Dr. Khayr’ulláh, a seller of rugs, who had come to Chicago at the time of the Exposition. The inscription on the sail was the Greatest Name. The student never became a Bahá’í, but his story attracted others.
Charles and Elizabeth attended Khayr’ulláh’s classes. He spoke to them of an as yet unknown “kernel of truth” he was preparing them to receive when the seekers were deserving of it. The Greenleafs at last reached the point of testing. They were given certain verses from the Bible to study, one of which was “... unto us a child is born ...”, and told to meditate upon them without a word of communication between them. Being conscientious, they did this and arrived independently at the realization that a new Messenger from God had come, the return of Christ. At the next class they reported their convictions. They had passed the test and were given the kernel, the knowledge of Bahá’u’lláh and the Greatest Name.
Some time passed. Khayr’ulláh’s classes attracted more and more people. But Elizabeth intuitively sensed some link was missing. Then she dreamed she was in a room in the Orient (she recognized it over twenty-five years later). Divans ran along the four walls, covered with oriental rugs. On one side of the room sat a glorious majestic figure whose face was hidden by the blaze of light shining from it. People were passing before it then turning to bow low to someone on the other side. Elizabeth’s eyes followed to see another figure, equally majestic, seated on a similar divan. His person was glorious, but the face, though shining, could be discerned, full of loving dignity. On His forehead was written the word “Aga”.
When she told Khayr’ulláh of this dream and asked for an explanation, he said he had been preparing the friends for this further teaching: the establishment of a Center of the Covenant in the person of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Bahá’u’lláh’s son! Great was the joy at this announcement, and correspondence began between Haifa and America.
As letters from Haifa took six weeks or more to arrive in America, a delay causing anxiety to many eager hearts, Dr. Khayr’ulláh suggested what he considered a practical solution which he presented to the class. He who had been praised by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá for his magnificent services, now took the first step towards becoming a Covenant-breaker. This was his suggestion: that he write a letter to the Master explaining the difficulties of communications and asking Him to retain His station of Infallibility for the believers in the East and to confer Infallibility on him (Dr. Khayr’ulláh) for the believers in the West. He asked the friends to think, to meditate and pray about this, then come to the next Sunday meeting to sign the letter. It would then be sent to the Master.
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Those who signed the letter disappeared from the history of the Faith. |
Grave misgivings entered Elizabeth’s heart but as Charles seemed to think it quite a sensible suggestion she tried to drown such thoughts. But they continued to trouble her until she had to tell Charles she could never sign such a letter. Charles felt impatient with such unfounded fears and the first coolness in all their married life grew between them. On the night before the meeting called to sign the letter, Elizabeth tried to ease
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her troubled heart with prayer. In the early morning,
she awoke with a voice calling out within her, “Tell
Charles to beware of the white ram!”
After a silent, unhappy breakfast, Charles prepared to go along to meet the friends. As he went to open the front door, Elizabeth could not contain herself any longer and called out that—to her—meaningless phrase: “Charles, beware of the white ram!” Immediately he was stilled, and turning to her a face white with shock, asked, “What do you know of the white ram?” “Nothing,” she replied, “nor do I wish to know unless you wish to tell me, except a voice told me to say these words to you.”
Then Charles proceeded to tell her of a recurring dream telling of his danger, though the dream recurred in slightly different forms. The past night he had dreamed he was walking on a high plateau. Across a deep, rocky ravine was a beautiful meadow, the deep green grass blossomed with flowers. Connecting the plateau with this lovely meadow was a narrow, unguarded bridge. As Charles reached the middle of the bridge, a sleek, white-haired ram would step from the deep grass to meet him on the bridge. Charles stooped to touch the silky coat of the beautiful beast. The ram would put down his head to butt him off the bridge down into the rocky ravine. That morning the ram’s eyes became the lustrous eyes of Khayr’ulláh! The Greenleafs went to the meeting to give a warning to the friends, without fully relating their dreams. Those who signed the letter disappeared from the history of the Faith. The faithful few became the bedrock of the Faith.
What was she like, the precious Elizabeth, to whom the Guardian said and wrote, “every moment of your life is precious”? The first word people used to describe her was “light”—an inner radiance of early morning light. One friend writes, “For me, always, Elizabeth was bridelike. She was not young, nor did she have classic features; as the years went by she became a little bent but still she had a secret joy that expressed itself even in her jewelry and simple, delicately colored clothes. One day I spoke admiringly of her dress and she said, “I dress for Bahá’u’lláh as I would for a lover.” This then was her source of mysterious joy, her love for the Reality of Bahá’u’lláh was an undying flame within her heart. A personal reality—her response shining in all the atoms of her being. In this life she moved with beauty and winning charm.”
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“Every moment of your life is precious,” the Guardian wrote her. |
She used the word “light” so often. She would say, “We must learn to live in the light, to bring all our plans, our words and doings to the source of light, to judge them by the words of Bahá’u’lláh.”
So many met her first at Green Acre, that spot on the “River of Light”, a proper setting. The Green Acre Committee had given her the use of the little cottage at the head of the road leading down to the Inn. It was her special joy to learn that the Master used to rest in a room there every afternoon during His visit to Green Acre the summer of 1912. This room she kept apart, only to let others enter on special occasions associated with His visit, or as a haven of prayer for those seeking comfort or to express their joy. The little garden around the Green Acre cottage was her laboratory as well as a delight to see and smell. The exquisite little nosegays she made as a love token for her visitors seemed to reveal the very essence, the inner reality of color, form and perfume of the flowers.
She longed to learn the sciences pertaining to this
Elizabeth Greenleaf
wonderful world, the outer a reflection of the inner. She
would show visitors the result of her cross-pollination of
flowers and the pink potatoes she was one of the first to
develop. She corresponded with a McGill University
professor for several years as an equal on the results of
her experiments. She related how she prayed for the
inner knowledge of the sciences. She amusingly told of
visiting some non-Bahá’í relatives and of being seated
beside Steinmetz (the electrical wizard) at the dinner
table. She began to speak to him and to question him on
his theories. After a few moments, he turned to look at
her more fully and asked, “At which university did you
study?” he was so impressed by her knowledge. Her
niece writes of a precious moment spent with Elizabeth
in her garden. They stood together to watch an eclipse of
the sun and Elizabeth remarked that the corona was like
the circle of light in ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s eyes.
Her sense of humor relieved many a troubled heart. A young Bahá’í visiting Green Acre in the late twenties was somewhat disturbed by a discussion of some of the older believers. They were not as yet completely freed from the concepts of reincarnation. There were little currents of irritation at the superior claims of some as to whether they were Mary Magdalene, or Martha, Peter or Thomas. Elizabeth had remained silent. Later, the young Bahá’í walked with her arm-in-arm from Fellowship House to the cottage. Elizabeth could sense the confusion in the mind and heart of her young companion, so, with a gentle squeeze of the arm and a burble of laughter in her voice, she whispered, “I’ll let you be the Báb, and I’ll be Bahá’u’lláh!” For a stunned moment, the young Bahá’í halted, then suddenly gales of laughter sent the cobwebs of cluttered thinking away
Rebuilding an island tradition[edit]
by Florence Conway
Udot Island believer and children
As I braced myself against the floorboards of the tiny
boat being tossed and slammed by the seasonal violence
of the Truk Lagoon the closing words of the Báb’s
address to the Letters of the Living came clearly to
mind and calmed my soul: “Arise in His name, put your trust wholly in Him, and be assured of ultimate victory.” Chief Kintoki Joseph, his finely-sculpted face
dripping wet and his drenched clothes clinging to his
slight frame, sat at the rear of the straining vessel
expertly guiding it through mammoth swells, and carefully easing it through the occasional breaking waves
that washed over us.
In the more stable moments my eyes were fixed on Kintoki’s face. The serenity and composure that had so impressed me a few days before at our first meeting were still there, in spite of the turmoil of our present surroundings. They complimented an obvious strength of character which had enabled this highly-respected man in the Truk District to defy tradition and declare his faith in Bahá’u’lláh. Although he was now retired from his position as Chief of Udot Island, he was, nevertheless, constantly sought after by his people as a source of leadership and guidance because he demonstrated a wisdom and fairness rare in any society today.
We were on our way to Udot where I was to be the guest of the Chief’s family for the next two weeks, teaching, as opportunities permitted, and helping the believers to deepen in the Faith. The plan also included assisting the Bahá’ís of Udot Island to elect their delegate to the National Convention of the Northwest Pacific Ocean. It was my first visit to Truk, one of the main island groups of the far-flung Carolines mentioned in “Tablets of the Divine Plan.”
The tide was up so the boat was able to be brought all
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Chief Kintoki Joseph and his wife Rieko
the way to the shore. A large gathering of people were
there to greet us, and as I scanned the scene I was able,
in seconds, to find the fair face of Noriko Tomioka, a
young Japanese believer who had volunteered one year
of her time to assist with the teaching work in Micronesia. She had arrived a couple of weeks earlier, entrusted
by the National Teaching Committee to the care and
protection of Chief Kintoki. This responsibility had been
taken quite seriously by the Chief, and Noriko had been
accepted into his home as a daughter, unfortunately
with all the restrictions on her activities that would
naturally accompany that position. Although communication between Noriko and me was extremely limited
by my complete ignorance of Japanese and her scant
knowledge of English, she later managed to convey to
me that this honor, so tenderly conferred upon her, had
somewhat hampered her teaching effort. And so it was
with relief and joy that she greeted me, hoping that my
presence might liberate her from the yoke of loving
protection the Chief had so wisely laid upon her.
As I stepped from the boat, I was ushered into Kintoki’s meeting house, a short distance away, where a great Feast had been prepared. All the village chiefs of Udot Island were present, as well as a few other dignitaries. As we all partook of the delectable repast, and shared our thoughts and feelings, I marvelled, as I have on other occasions in my Bahá’í life, at the miracles of this age—the mere coming together of this group, where mention of Bahá’u’lláh was made, was significant and historic.
Although the Chief had provided me with an interpreter, I found the young man to be extremely shy, and fearful of using what little knowledge of English he seemed to have. As it turned out, our host was our best
Udot Island believer
interpreter. He had a fair knowledge of Japanese, having learned it during the Japanese occupation of the
area before World War II, and I found his knowledge of
English to be better than I had expected. But more
important, his language ability was magnified by his
uncommon perception. He did not like to speak in
English, since he felt inadequate, but, as time went on,
communication between us eased and improved
considerably.
Since Chief Kintoki spent his days working in Moen, a pattern soon developed of sitting around the table after the evening meal for daily conversation. We would eat in the meeting house, a fairly large, open shelter, with an adjoining part which served as the cook house. Often there would be a few other people present who would sit quietly at one of the two other tables, sometimes talking in soft, muffled tones, and barely visible in the dim light from the kerosene lamp. Occasionally the Chief would
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The first believer of Truk, Mr. Stem Salle, with his wife and children.
speak to them in Trukese, explaining the highlights of
our conversation. During comfortable lulls, I would
listen to the massive Truk Lagoon lapping lightly at the
shore only a few feet away, at times to be interrupted by
the animated chatter of the palm leaves being teased by
a playful evening breeze.
These nightly sessions would last for at least a couple of hours. Kintoki shared his understanding of the customs and history of the Trukese people, and it was often possible to reinforce the value and sound basis of these customs with principles of the Faith. He had enrolled as a Bahá’í less than two years before, at a public meeting held in Moen by a team of traveling teachers. However, he had had little opportunity since that time to increase his knowledge of Bahá’u’lláh’s teachings. This is the case with the majority of the believers of Micronesia. Literature in their languages is scant, sometimes only one small pamphlet; then, there are many who do not even read.
Noriko and I spent our days in Udot walking from village to village, sometimes trying to locate declared Bahá’ís, and always sharing the Message with new people. We had a useful system worked out, although it was not the most satisfying to Noriko, since she usually ended up talking with the older people who were the only ones who might understand Japanese, and I would talk to the youth who usually had some knowledge of English. We would seek out a person who had a fair ability in one of our languages, and they, in turn, could translate into Trukese for the other people who happened to be present. The Chief had felt quite safe in turning Noriko over to me in his daily absence, since being fortyish seems to dissolve many of the inherent dangers threatening females in most societies. Thus, Noriko and I were as free as birds.
On my third day in Udot a tragic incident occurred. The chief of the neighboring village, who happened to live very close to where we were staying, committed suicide. It was following a quarrel with a defiant daughter, who rendered the old man helpless by her disregard for the tradition of respect for one’s elders. Sadly enough, her attitude was symptomatic of the penetration of Western customs that is eating away at the fabric of the Trukese way of life. The despondent and defeated man had hanged himself not far from his house.
The people of Udot immediately responded to a need that had arisen in their community. Everyone in the vicinity cooperated to assist the bereaved family, who would, for the next few days, have to feed the many people who would come to be with them through their time of trouble. There was no harmony lost from their lives, nor did the tempo of life change much; it was, rather, that all effort was at once directed toward a common goal. It seemed as if the whole community had been quietly transformed into a perfectly-synchronized mechanism to accomplish the task before them.
Noriko and I were not asked, nor were we expected, to help, and our needs were attended to just as before. In fact, I felt excluded and apart, and decided that this position was not acceptable for the Bahá’í visitors. So, as the people began to congregate the day following the tragedy, I approached Kintoki’s wife, Rieko, who spoke some English, and conveyed to her our wish to help in some way. When told that there was nothing we could do, I asked if it would be all right if we visited the family and went to pray where the man was lying in state. She assured me this would be good, if I was sure we wanted to go. I inquired further about the customs of the people regarding death, so we would not, in our ignorance, offend our hosts or the bereaved family.
The news that there were Bahá’í visitors on Udot had spread rapidly, and I knew our actions would be observed with great interest when we joined the gathering. We dressed in our best clothes, Noriko even replacing her much-loved jeans with a dress, and the two of us, finding that the others had already gone, left, by ourselves, to pay our respects. We approached the clearing near the man’s house and saw about a hundred people, sitting in small groups on the short-tufted Japanese
[Page 13]
grass that covered the whole area, right to the water’s
edge. We found Rieko and quietly asked if she would
take us to the bereaved family, since we did not know
who they were. She led us to the house and we climbed
the two steep steps, and entered. Directly before us, on
the floor, was the open wooden box holding the corpse—hands crossed on the chest, and face completely vacant. Several women were sitting around the box constantly fanning the body, to retard deterioration. I sat
on the floor next to the older woman Rieko indicated was
the man’s wife. We did not speak the same language, but
I took her hand, and could feel her pain and share her
anguish, and I tried to comfort her with love. I then
turned and looked down on the lifeless form of her
husband, and prayed that God would shower His mercy
on this soul. After awhile, Noriko and I quietly left and
joined the people outside. We sat on the grass for a long
time, just relying on our being there to express our
concern.
During the next two days more people arrived, some coming from other islands, and I realized that something remarkable was happening. Many people would stop and congregate at Chief Kintoki’s house on their way, to and from, the home of the “dead man”, and they seemed to be seeking us out ... for hours on end, we were teaching the life-giving message of Bahá’u’lláh to different small groups who would gather around us on the grass. They were brimming with interest and questions, and they continued to come. Young people came with their guitars, and would sing for us the Trukese songs in their soft, mellow voices—often love songs, that would bring far-off dreams to their warm, dark eyes.
We marveled at this unmatched opportunity that had come to us as a result of the man’s death. As I thanked God in prayer for this unexpected bounty, I prayed again for the departed soul of the chief. With each new group that gathered around to hear Bahá’u’lláh’s Message, I repeated that prayer, and once more at the side of that rough-hewn box.
We attended the funeral a few days later. As the box was closed, the sound of the nails being pounded in broke the silence of Udot and brought forth the mournful wailing of the dead man’s family in totally unbridled grief. The coffin was placed in the shallow grave, and handfuls of dirt were cast by friends and relatives. Several men, with shovels, quickly completed the task by carefully mounding the fresh earth and bordering the site with rocks.
That night, after the evening meal, we sat at Chief Kintoki’s table for hours, talking about the teachings of Bahá’u’lláh concerning the nature of the soul, life after death, heaven and hell. The stream of questions seemed endless, and he would nod his approval frequently as we responded. On subsequent occasions, when the Chief spoke to different groups, he would often turn to me following his discourse, and with shining eyes explain that he had just told them about the Bahá’í teachings on one of these subjects.
On these memorable evenings at table he also shared with us the deep concern of the elders of the island for the future of the Trukese people. Working in the district center he could daily observe the erosion of their way of life, brought about by the unremitting encroachment of materialism with its allied evils of alcohol, sexual license and violence. Values, which had guaranteed peace, harmony and order for generations, were being swept away by its force, and the early signs of its ravage were now appearing in Udot. A kind of battle of Armageddon was being waged on these remote and neglected islands in the Pacific. There was no way the old way of life could be retained; the wise Chief knew this, but he also knew, that to submit to the new ways now threatening them, would be destructive to his people. The youth were the first to be affected. Instead of being engaged in gathering the food, pounding the breadfruit or carefully building the once critically-needed, outrigger canoes, as they had been in the past, they now wiled away an increasing part of their days in idleness, with a diminishing sense of being needed by a family, whose diet might now consist more of rice and canned meat. Inter-island transportation was now provided by motor boats, owned only by those people who had jobs in Moen.
The status of women in the Trukese society is very low, and it was apparent that Chief Kintoki was being challenged by having to confront a real example of the new principle of the equality of men and women. Just my being there, alone, in the capacity of a Bahá’í teacher and as a guest in his home, was providing him with a completely new set of circumstances with which to cope. I sensed that it was creating a dilemma for him and made every effort not to make it more difficult, but rather to give him time and opportunity to work it out for himself. It spoke of his maturity that the Chief was able, within a relatively short period of time, to accept this middle-aged woman, who unashamedly would work in the cook house with his wife, quietly serve the guests who often congregated in his home, and then, the next moment take her place at table opposite him and become
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Bahá’ís on Dublon, one of the three islands in the Truk Lagoon. The author, Mrs. Conway, is at the right.
the source he was forced to tap to satisfy his
obvious hunger for knowledge of Bahá’u’lláh’s teachings. It was another evidence of the power of the Word of
God to recreate us; in this case, to have Chief Kintoki
overcome a deeply-entrenched tradition which was basic to the family and social structure of Trukese life. It
was a victory for him, and I quietly rejoiced with him.
No mention was ever made, but I believe he knew that I
understood, and was grateful. Further evidence of the
change appeared toward the end of my stay in Udot. We
were discussing plans for a meeting at Kintoki’s home,
and arranging to have people notified. I mentioned that
the women often did not attend the meetings, and that in
this day the teachings of Bahá’u’lláh say it is important
for the women to participate, too. The day of the meeting the women came, many of them. But even more
exciting, they spoke up and participated fully in the
discussions.
One Saturday morning Chief Kintoki, Noriko and I set out across the choppy channel to the neighboring island of Eot where we planned to meet with the Bahá’ís. Saka Manus is the Chief of Eot and he is also a Bahá’í, having declared his faith at the same time as Chief Kintoki. As we approached the little island a vision of unsurpassed loveliness filled our eyes. The morning sun cast its clean light on Eot—a lush, green, picturesque garden floating in the Truk Lagoon. There were cleared, grassy areas surrounding the simple dwellings, shaded here and there by sprawling mango and giant breadfruit trees. The shore was being guarded by friendly sentinels—the casual coconut palms, leaning expectantly over the water.
As we pulled up beside the rock jetty, a broadly-smiling, rotund figure approached to greet us. It was the proud chief of this tiny dot in the Northwest Pacific Ocean. We disembarked, exchanged greetings, and Noriko and I waited while the two friends talked together. Kintoki, at one point, turned and explained that most of the Bahá’ís were fishing or gathering breadfruit, so we could not have a meeting that day. Somewhat disappointed I tried another tack, and suggested that Noriko and I could walk around the island to meet some of the people. With a trace of finality in his voice, Chief Kintoki replied that we would return the following day. I decided not to pursue the issue, openly, but since we were there I thought surely there must be something we could do. While Kintoki and Manus continued their talk, I silently prayed that somehow we would have the opportunity to teach that day on Eot.
Some time later, Kintoki turned in our direction, and suggested that the four of us walk around the island and look for the Bahá’ís. I was almost brought to tears by this unexpected development. He asked that we take the scrapbooks, which we relied on so heavily in our teaching. I pulled them out of the back-pack, where they had been tucked away for protection against the spray of water that always drenched us when we traveled by boat in the lagoon. Kintoki insisted on carrying both of them. My spirit soared, and it seemed that even the earth beneath our feet took on a preciousness for what was happening. The Chief of Eot, the Chief of Udot, a courageous young Japanese girl and a fortyish American of New England stock—by most standards a rather unlikely little group—set out to tread the paths of Eot
[Page 15]
that day, bearing the Message of Bahá’u’lláh to the
wondering but warm-hearted islanders.
At our first stop, we were waiting for a Bahá’í to return from fishing, when I discovered that a young man nearby spoke some English, so I asked Chief Kintoki for one of the scrapbooks and sat down with the youth explaining, with the help of visual aids, about the Faith. I happened to notice how carefully Kintoki was observing what I was doing. A few minutes later, I looked in his direction, and saw him, with several people gathered around, the other scrapbook open before him, sharing with people, whose needs he so well understood, the life-giving Message of Bahá’u’lláh. It was a thrilling occurrence to see this wise and respected man humbly engaged in this most important and most rewarding task—teaching the Cause of God. None of us could have evaluated the true significance of the occasion, but as I watched, I was able to partly sense the special nature of that small gathering on this far-off, but certainly not God-forsaken, island in the Pacific. It reminded me again of how we must constantly try to evaluate our goals, our actions, our accomplishments, by an entirely new standard—a standard completely different from that accepted by the society in which we live. To the so-called sophisticated world outside, this place and its people were unknown and unimportant—the fringes of mankind who were uninvolved in directing the course of civilization, who were just being carried along by the forces of progress, like lifeless debris carried along by a roaring river, to be occasionally deposited on its banks, or wedged under rocks, maybe to be picked up again by new surges in the powerfully flowing water. How distorted man’s vision can become!
Although this day would go unnoticed, yet I knew a significant event was going on before my eyes as I watched the wise Chief Kintoki, gently opening the hearts of the people to God’s new Revelation. And Saka Manus carefully observed his friend because soon he, too, would take the initiative to experience this great gift of God, and teach his own people.
Around mid-afternoon we made our way to the house of Manus, where we removed our shoes and stepped into a simple, immaculate room. His smiling wife greeted us with great dignity, and led us to the low table carefully spread with a wide assortment of attractive island dishes. At each place was an opened coconut, almost brimful of milk. In the islands, in the heat of the day, there is always someone who will shimmy his way to the top of a coconut tree, drop a few coconuts, then on descending, skillfully lop the top of the fruit and hand it to you. This, all in a matter of minutes, provides a drink both cool and refreshing.
We took our places on the floor around the table, and were soon joined by a young public health worker, who spoke English. He became quite interested in the Faith as he was translating for me, and would forget, sometimes, to pass on the answers to questions being asked by the two chiefs. The questions were those most important to their people. They wanted to know what the Bahá’í teachings say about communion, and we had an opportunity to redefine it in terms of the Nineteen-day Feast. They asked about heaven, hell and baptism because the missionaries had put great stress on these subjects.
Our memorable day in Eot ended late that afternoon as we waved our farewell to Chief Manus, with a promise to return the following day. The trip home offered a panoramic view of the glorious aftermath of a sun, recently descended behind the large island of Tol. Salmon-pink clouds sat precariously on the higher peaks of the island, but only briefly did the spectacle last. We came to the shore of Udot at that time of day when darkness begins to fall, when supreme quietness sets in, and the only sound heard was a chirping bird,
Noriko Tomioka, a Japanese youth traveling teacher.
running that last fleeting errand before turning in for
the night.
During my last afternoon in Udot, I spent some time lying on the thick Japanese grass bordering the lagoon. In one direction, the sun was playing on the water, and had created a path of light that stretched as far as I could see. It looked like it was strewn with shimmering diamonds all the way to the sky; it was so bright it blocked out everything else from my vision, and naturally led to day-dreaming. What if the light of the Faith was that visible to all mankind, so it would blind our eyes to all that is unimportant—the materialistic goals and pursuits that cloud our vision? Suddenly a cloud did obstruct the light of the sun and the shimmering path faded into a dull gray ocean. How quickly it had changed, and I wondered how abrupt and drastic the change in us, when we allow a cloud of disobedience, negligence or forgetfulness to intervene between that Source of light and our own lives. And I recalled people’s appearances, and how it was easy to tell when they were receiving and accepting that glorious Light, and how drab their countenance, no matter what their physical attributes, when it was not there. The cloud passed, and again there was light upon light. As I reflected more, the scene was abruptly invaded by the round, crawling figure of a lovely baby, not far from where I lay. His brown skin glowed in the sun, and his eyes danced with delight at the coolness of the grass on his naked body. I submitted to the happy intrusion, and we played and laughed together.
The next day Noriko and I left Udot. Huddled together on the hard floor of the small boat, we raised our heads, and braved the wind and the water, to scan the islands of the Truk Lagoon. The morning was overcast, and the islands appeared a dark gray in the distance, like slumbering giants just waiting to be brought to life by the light of God’s new Revelation. How long would it take, and where were the valiant souls who would arise to achieve it?
The Great Safari[edit]
part twenty
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The friends met her at a distance, and all the way to the meeting place they danced before her and sang. |
The visit to the northern district of Malawi was a very happy and unforgettable occasion. In Karonga, where we spent two nights, we were able to meet with the Bahá’ís and their friends on several occasions. This is a relatively newly opened area through the efforts of one of the devoted members of the National Spiritual Assembly, and the Bahá’ís there are very devoted and eager to spread the Faith.
In the village of Bwiba, near Karonga, we met with about 30 of the friends under the shade of a huge mango tree. Rúḥíyyih Khánum spoke to them in detail about the teachings, prayers, and the spread of the Message of Bahá’u’lláh. After the meeting a non-Bahá’í lady, who is an admirer of the Faith and runs a shop near this tree, invited us into her shop for a cup of tea and some buns. The friends begged us to come again on the same afternoon, which we did. However, when the meeting was about to start a message arrived from the senior chief of the district to the effect that he was very anxious to meet Amatu’l-Bahá but could not leave a scheduled meeting of his own some distance away in another village. He is a very well-educated man, an admirer of the Faith, with a perfect knowledge of English, and is translating some Bahá’í pamphlets and books into his own language for publication. He had also given a piece of land to the Bahá’ís and was anxious for them to build a Centre on it as soon as possible. When Rúḥíyyih Khánum arrived at the meeting, she found about 200 people gathered, many of them sub-chiefs and other important villagers. She was immediately invited most courteously to a seat by Chief Mwaka Sungula, who introduced her befittingly and asked her to tell his people what the Bahá’í Faith stands for. Her short and illuminating talk was much appreciated by all. The spirit of this wise and tolerant chief, who was most anxious to have the land he had donated have a suitable meeting place built upon it, combined with the great need of this newly opened area, prompted Rúḥíyyih Khánum to contribute, from a sum which has been placed at her disposal by a class of Bahá’í students in Persia, the amount needed for this building.
The most northern town in Malawi we visited was the town of Chipita, where Amatu’l-Bahá gave a talk at the Chipita Secondary School to over 120 students. This talk was very enthusiastically received, discussions continued after the question period even outside the hall. Counsellor Mr. Shidan Fatheazam was invited to go back that night and show some Bahá’í slides.
In the town of Mzuza, which is the provincial capital of the North, we spent one night meeting with the believers in the evening, and Amatu’l-Bahá gave a public talk at the Townhall the next day to over 30 selected enquirers, many of them distinguished government officials. This was later followed by a reception given by the Local Spiritual Assembly of that town which had made all these excellent arrangements on their own initiative.
In the city of Lilongwe, a modern city under construction and planned to be the future capital of the country, we met with the Bahá’ís in the home of the pioneers. Unfortunately at the last minute, because of an unforeseen complication, the public talk had to be cancelled, but at an informal gathering the Bahá’ís and a few of their friends were very happy to meet with and listen to Rúḥíyyih Khánum.
In the village of Malaka Market over 120 people gathered under the shade of trees, at Amatu’l-Bahá’s meeting.
The gentleman in the photograph, believed to be over 100 years old, insisted on meeting Rúḥíyyih Khánum when she visited his village in Malawi.
In the course of her talk she said those who accept
and follow the teachings of Bahá’u’lláh are like a farmer
who comes in contact with a new and superior type of
maize grain and has the courage to take it and try it out.
It is this first farmer to whom the honor goes, because
after the others see the results with their own eyes many
will follow him and plant the new grain, but the honor
and the distinction will not be theirs; that belongs to the
one who had the vision and dared to try the new grain.
When the meeting finally came to an end—the villagers
being most reluctant to let it end at all and continually
plying their visitor with questions—the wife of the devoted traveling teacher, whose home was in that village,
served us all most lovingly with a delicious lunch.
After this strenuous week of continuous activity, the National Assembly in its program had left a day of rest for Amatu’l-Bahá and we spent it alone on Zomba Plateau, one of Malawi’s famous scenic beauties, high up on a mountain overlooking a vast panorama of lush green valley, distant hills and the town of Zomba.
In the village of Ntonda the Bahá’í children, holding beautiful bunches of flowers, welcomed Amatu’l-Bahá with songs in front of their newly erected Centre. In a number of these local village Bahá’í Centres we noticed that several copies of the same colored photograph of the Shrine of the Báb decorated the walls, and when we inquired how there happened to be so many of these, we were told that at an advanced deepening course held by the National Spiritual Assembly a copy of this photograph
[Page 18]
Ladies presenting gifts to ‘Amatu’l-Bahá at the National Teaching Institute, Amalika, Malawi.
had been given to each attendant as a memento of
the occasion; and when they returned to their villages,
they had decided that they wanted to further beautify
their local Centres and therefore had donated their
photographs to the Centres. We noticed throughout
Malawi that the believers took much pride in their village Centres; often they had surfaced the floor with
bricks, planted flowers outside, and in general showed
their love and pride in the building they themselves,
often without any outside help, had erected in the name
of Bahá’u’lláh.
At Mthumpwa, one of the most active communities, a large number of village Bahá’ís received and welcomed Amatu’l-Bahá in their beautiful Centre. The chairman of the meeting, in his words of welcome, made a singularly beautiful and touching remark; he said we have heard the name of Shoghi Effendi and have learned to love him very much for his work and his life and his station, but although he lived in our time we did not have the privilege of seeing him; how fortunate we are today to see his wings (meaning Rúḥíyyih Khánum). In this village was a very old man, believed to be over a hundred, doubled up with age, but extremely sharp in his mind. He asked to meet Rúḥíyyih Khánum and had his picture taken with her, because, he said, “I have seen everything that has happened in this land and this day is a very special day in my life.” We slept there that night and partook of a delicious meal prepared by the dear Bahá’ís.
Malawi is a tea planting country and in the middle of beautiful estates are several Bahá’í communities; believers from four different areas gathered in Manjolo to receive and meet with Amatu’l-Bahá. This was one of the happiest meetings we had. The friends met her some distance from the home of one of the believers where the meeting was to be held, and all the way to the meeting place they danced before her and sang to her. She entered this house from under a green arch they had specially erected for her, and as the crowd was too many to get into the building, the meeting was held outside. One of the believers, a precious soul, had written a special poem of welcome for Amatu’l-Bahá, and as he sang it to her he was himself so deeply moved that several times he had to wipe away his tears. The refrain of this song was, “Amatu’l-Bahá means the one who carries the Faith of God all over the world, who comes from Haifa.” Rúḥíyyih Khánum spoke on the great honor which belongs to the first believers everywhere; she said when we teach people we should not ever make them feel that we are forcing them to accept; this is the water of life which we offer to anyone who is thirsty; anyone who is not thirsty is free to leave it and go his own way. She said to dispute and argue with people is forbidden by Bahá’u’lláh and we should guard ourselves against such things. Ladies from each of the communities very ceremoniously presented Rúḥíyyih Khánum with gifts they had brought for her, such as fruit and baskets and so on. A very beautiful incident was the farewell talk of the chairman, the same man who had written the song. He said for this meeting Bahá’ís from these four communities had contributed a sum of money to prepare food for all of us, and of this sum “about thirty cents remains and we would like to give it to our beloved guest.” Rúḥíyyih Khánum was very touched and told them that for herself of course she could not accept, but she would take this money and give it in their name to the National Spiritual Assembly. This pleased everyone. Before we left they kindly served us a delicious meal they had prepared.
At the end of her tour in Malawi Amatu’l-Bahá lunched with the National Spiritual Assembly at the National Ḥaẓíratu’l-Quds and once again met with them and thanked them for all they had done, as well as for their gift of beautiful national costumes they had given each of us, which we wore all the time.
The town of Amalika has a beautiful National Bahá’í Teaching Institute where we met with a large number of believers. In addition to the very spacious main hall there are dormitories and many other rooms, as well as a beautiful garden. The purchase of this property fulfilled a national Nine Year Plan goal and it is gradually being put into regular service for its primary and vital purpose of deepening the believers. Amatu’l-Bahá, in her most inspiring talk, said the Cause of Bahá’u’lláh is like a vast living temple and each of us believers is like one of its bricks; though we are all so different we are part of the whole. She spoke of the life and sufferings of the Blessed Beauty and answered the many eager questions put to her. This was the last meeting Amatu’l-Bahá was able to attend in Malawi as unfortunately she caught a bad cold and was confined to bed. She was therefore unable to attend the meeting in the south and sent me in her place with other friends.
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The Cause of Bahá’u’lláh is like a vast Temple, and each believer like one of its bricks. |
Southern Malawi, unlike most of the country, is very hot. At Kalenso, a large number of believers and their friends were awaiting the arrival of Rúḥíyyih Khánum and, needless to say, they were disappointed but understood the reason for her absence. We spent that night in the home of a member of the National Spiritual Assembly and deeply appreciated the hospitality we received from him and his beautiful wife. The next day on our way back to the city we stopped in the village of Blair and, under the shade of mango trees that were indeed life-saving in that heat, had a very enjoyable meeting. There were many non-Bahá’ís present, and the discussion went on and on in their eagerness to learn more about this Faith. A delicious lunch which we shared with them all crowned this happy occasion before we returned to Limbe.
This trip to Malawi was one of the happiest experiences we have had in Africa. We found a devoted and exemplary community with both distinguished African believers and dedicated pioneers, all harmoniously serving Bahá’u’lláh together. Honesty, trustworthiness, and friendliness seem to be marked characteristics of the Malawi people; indeed, as Amatu’l-Bahá assured the President when she met him, it was her hope and prayer that this nation may be blessed and grow from strength to strength, to become a shining example to the rest of this continent.
Illuminated Tablet presented to college[edit]
An illuminated copy of a letter from ‘Abdu’l-Bahá bestowing blessings upon Mount Holyoke College for girls, in Massachusetts, was presented to the institution by the Bahá’í community of South Hadley on May 26, during the college’s graduation weekend.
The original letter was mailed in 1919 to Dr. Frederick D’Evelyn, an early American believer, in honor of the appointment of his daughter, Charlotte, to the Mount Holyoke faculty. Dr. D’Evelyn traveled with ‘Abdu’l-Bahá during His visit to America, and wrote many articles for Star of the West about their journey across America. Miss Charlotte D’Evelyn, who was too ill to attend the presentation ceremony, was on the faculty of the college’s English department for almost 40 years, until her recent retirement.
The framed Tablet, and an accompanying photograph of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, was received for Mount Holyoke by Miss Mary Tuttle, Secretary of the college. They will hang in the campus’ 1886 Room which is used for alumni receptions, and for Tuesday night firesides by the Bahá’í College Club.
Mrs. Penny Walker represented the Spiritual Assembly of South Hadley at the presentation. She gave a brief talk on the life and station of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. Miss Amy Seidel, a graduating senior and member of the Bahá’í Club, spoke about Dr. Frederick D’Evelyn and his association with ‘Abdu’l-Bahá.
South Hadley, Mass., Bahá’ís present illuminated copy of
Tablet by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá to Mount Holyoke College Secretary
Miss Mary Tuttle (third from right). Mrs. Penny Walker
(right) represented the South Hadley Assembly.
According to Miss Seidel the school was very interested in receiving the Tablet. Mount Holyoke College
reportedly has a religious tradition and its graduates have rendered important services to many of the
world’s important religions. It was said that the college
administrators were very pleased to learn that the
school was mentioned by one of the central figures of a
new world religion.
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Chileans plan teaching
One of five area teaching conferences held throughout Chile this past June, this one in Valdivia was attended by believers within a 200 mile radius, including pioneer Robert Siegel, (front row left), representative of the National Teaching Committee, and pioneer Reed Chandler (top, third from right), representative of the National Spiritual Assembly. Similar conferences were held in Concepción, Copiapo, Santiago, and Valparaiso. |
In recent years there has been a great deal of Bahá’í activity on the Mount Holyoke campus. Four years ago there was only one elderly Bahá’í in the town of South Hadley. Today there are more than 40 Bahá’ís in the community, and until graduation there were 13 Bahá’ís at Mount Holyoke.
At least five of the seventeen head residents of dormitories next term will be Bahá’ís, Miss Seidel said. A course on the Bahá’í Faith has been taught at the college for two consecutive years. The first year it was prepared by the staff of the religion department, the second year by the Bahá’í College Club.
The College Club has also supported extensive service projects. During the past two years, for example, a Bahá’í has visited the college infirmary every day to run errands for and serve the student patients under treatment there.
To his honor, Dr. Frederick W. D’Evelyn
San Francisco, California, U.S.A.
Upon him be Bahá’u’lláh El Abha.
O thou servant of Bahá’u’lláh!
Thy letter was received. Its contents were conducive to joy and gladness. I pray that through the blessings of GOD thou mayest daily increase in faith, assurance and, firmness in the Covenant and Testament; mayest be assisted and confirmed and be the cause of the exaltation of the Bahá’í Teachings.
Thou hast written about the school for women; I supplicate and entreat to the Kingdom of God and beg for that school limitless confirmations, so that it may be born anew, may become the manifestation of the bounties of the generous Lord, the lights of Supreme Guidance may shine upon it and may illumine it, and may become the center of merciful susceptibilities.
Convey on my behalf to thy respected wife the utmost kindness.
Upon thee be Baha El Abha.
Translated by Shoghi Rabbani
Bahjeh, Acca, Palestine, July 24, 1919
(Note: The school mentioned is Mount Holyoke College, South Hadley, Mass., U.S.A.)
Around the World[edit]
Guatemalan Bahá’ís attend study class in Palmira Vieja.
Guatemalan teaching[edit]
High up on the side of a green mountain, overlooking a valley Guatemala shares with Mexico, is a community of less than 100 thatched roof adobe houses with dirt floors and no windows, called Palmira Vieja. Its people (women and children included) work hard on large coffee plantations during the harvest, but still find themselves in perpetual debt. A man from this village was working on one of the larger plantations at sea level where most of the poor work part of the year and return home with malaria or hepatitis. There he met a Bahá’í. He expressed the desire to know more. The Bahá’í arranged for a pioneer to go to his home. He became on fire with the teachings and went to friends in Palmira Vieja to share the message. They were thrilled. They, in turn, went out as a group—entire families—to teach their neighbors who lived at the foot of the mountain in Mexico. They asked for nothing, carried their food, and walked barefoot up and down their steep mountain side.
In April of that year they formed their assembly in Palmira Vieja. Many times, the entire Assembly, with their children, went on foot to teach in other communities.
Since this place is inaccessible by car most of the year, it has been visited, perhaps not more than twice a year. They always elect their assembly, delegate and officials without help and send in their report which sometimes takes 3 weeks to arrive.
Much of the deepening in Palmira Vieja has been carried out by Auxiliary Board Member, Edith McLaren. No one who has made the trip can forget their horseback ride through the valley where clouds of colorful butterflies erupt as the horses pass.
One of the goals of the 9-Year Plan was to teach and form an assembly in the frontier towns of the state of Chiapas, Mexico.
Rhodesia elects NSA[edit]
Members of the National Spiritual Assembly of
Rhodesia, from left to right: (standing) Mr. Joseph
Mhandiwa, Mrs. Helen Hope, Mr. Thomas Lisota, Mr.
Tobias Mnmvuma, (seated) Mrs. Iran Sohaili, Mr. Amos
Zanyamakando, Mrs. Doreen Mpafu. The other members, Mr. Dale Allen and Mr. John Sargent, had not
returned from the Third International Convention when
this photograph was taken.
The National Convention of the Bahá’ís of Rhodesia, held in Burnside, Bulawago.
Chad National Convention[edit]
The Third National Convention of the Bahá’ís of Chad was held in the small city of Sarh (formerly Fort Archambault) in the South of Chad. The Mayor of Sarh donated a municipal building for the event.
The proceedings were quickly translated into French, Massa, Arabic, Kenga, Sara and Sara N’Gombaye.
There are more than three hundred localities where Bahá’ís reside in Chad, and fifty Local Spiritual Assemblies.
The above photograph shows the delegates, visitors and pioneers attending the Third National Bahá’í Convention of Chad.
Tórshavn elects Assembly[edit]
The first Local Spiritual Assembly of Tórshavn, Faroe Islands, was elected on the evening of April 10, 1973, in the home of Knight of Bahá’u’lláh, Eskil Ljungberg.
The first youth declarations in the Faroes were obtained by an international proclamation team which toured the islands after the North Atlantic Conference in Reykjavik in September 1971. During 1972 a second international teaching team visited the islands. The event was reported by the national press, and leaflets (the first in Faroese) were distributed to every one of the 3,000 homes in the capital city of Tórshavn.
The members of the Spiritual Assembly are, from left to right: (standing) Mr. Richard Bury, Miss Ilona Rodgers, Mr. Artin Dixon, Mr. Roy Philbrow, (seated) Mr. David Hines, Mrs. Margeret Hines, Mrs. Emma Reinert (first Faroese Bahá’í), Mrs. Sue Philbrow, and Knight of Bahá’u’lláh Mr. Eskil Ljungberg.
Rwanda National Convention[edit]
The National Convention of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands was held on Bahá’í headquarters land, in Tarawa, the capital, May 15-20.
Twenty-three delegates from nine islands gathered in the National Teaching Institute and the Bahá’í Naneaba for the Convention. The Institute and the Maneaba, a native meeting hall with no sides and a high thatched roof, are part of the national headquarters Pao Penox.
Gilbert & Ellice Is.[edit]
The members of the National Spiritual Assembly of Rwanda, elected at the second National Convention in Kigali, May 26-27, 1973, are, from left to right: (seated) Mr. Aron Ndazivunnye, Mr. Aloys Nzaramba, Mr. Denis Hitimana, (standing) Mrs. Zahereh Taaid, Dr. A. Taaid, Mr. Etienne Thcigaga, Mr. Philippe Bwana, Mr. Alphonse Semanyenzi, and Mr. Athanese Ntaganda.
At the National Convention in the city of Kigali thirty-eight delegates represented believers in 191 localities around the country. There are currently forty-seven Local Spiritual Assemblies in Rwanda.
After the Convention a few of the delegates remained to join a teaching team preparing to visit several islands for mass teaching. Teaching teams, comprised of fifteen persons ranging in age from fifteen to sixty, are new to the Gilbert and Ellice Islands, although they have already been successful in spreading the Bahá’í Faith.
Convention Chairman Mote Kiaman (left), of Betio; and Convention Secretary Masipei Takarawa (right), of Bikenibeu; quietly make their choice for the Bahá’í National Assembly. Photo by Dr. Marr.
National Bahá’í Convention of Tanzania, held at the National Bahá’í Center, Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania.
The Greenleafs: an eternal union[edit]
and they walked on happily together.
Of her meetings with ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, she felt she could not adequately describe Him. From time to time she would describe His eyes, the movements of His hands and body, His gentleness, His strength. All adjectives were meaningless in relation to his state of being. However, she related this experience which linked itself to a private family joke. Whenever each of the Greenleafs thought the other was receiving undue adulation from others, the one or the other would murmur “Ham and eggs!” into the ear of the praised one as the most plebian expression possible to prick the ego balloon. One day Elizabeth was busy as usual with Lua Getsinger and other Bahá’í ladies in preparing and serving refreshments for the throng of visitors who came to meet the Master. They were arranging food on a table in the anteroom outside the room where ‘Abdu’l-Bahá was holding His private interviews. Lua, glancing at Elizabeth, asked, “Have you been with the Master yet?” When Elizabeth answered “No”, Lua looked at her a little impatiently, opened a second door near them leading into the Master’s room and practically thrust Elizabeth inside. A chair being beside the door, Elizabeth sank into it gratefully. The Master was speaking to, and His secretary was translating for, two ladies seated beside ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. Elizabeth sat, absorbed in watching Him. He suddenly paused in His flow of words, glanced at her and exclaimed, “Ham and eggs!” Then throwing back His head, burst into laughter. She sat stunned. The Master continued his discourse with his visitors until kindly He escorted them to the door.
The marriage of Charles and Elizabeth Greenleaf was a “Marriage for eternity” as ‘Abdu’l-Bahá wrote them. Charles said before his death that he would not have wished to have changed one word or deed of Elizabeth’s during their life together. Later, after Charles’ death in 1920, the Master wrote Elizabeth, “You shouldst not mourn nor grieve because this separation is but temporary. Thou wilt find him in the Divine Kingdom in the utmost joy, happiness and rapture. This union is eternal.... Do thou strive with heart and soul to be confirmed with such deeds as to become the cause of his joy and happiness in the other world.”
The beloved Guardian showed every tenderness to Elizabeth on her pilgrimage to Haifa in 1926. It was then he told her, what he later wrote, “Every moment of your life is precious.” He suggested that she teach with Mrs. Maxwell in Canada. It was after her pilgrimage that she came to Montreal to give the stimulus which began the Montreal Youth Group. This group later gained continent-wide and even international renown; its original members served on Local and National Spiritual Assemblies, as well as becoming pioneers to other lands.
At a time when Mrs. Schopflocker was on one of her extended worldwide teaching tours, Elizabeth acted as hostess-housekeeper in the Schopflocker home. She was active as always in teaching. One evening she received a very abusive telephone call warning her that her life was in danger if she continued her teaching activities. The next night she went off, unperturbed, to class. There was a long walk of three blocks of badly lit streets to reach the streetcar. On her return late at night, when Elizabeth stepped off the streetcar, there was Bruce, the Schopflocker’s huge English bulldog waiting to escort her home. He had never done this before. He continued his guard for a month, then just as suddenly as he began, he stopped.
So many stories flood to mind. One afternoon as she sat praying in her hotel bedroom in a city of the deep south, she felt someone looking at her. The window was open to catch the breeze. There, on his high board sat a Negro window-washer looking so intently at her. When she greeted him, he said she looked so happy; he wanted so much to see a truly happy face. So, at the window, they chatted, Elizabeth giving him a copy of a Bahá’í prayer by which he could seek happiness for himself.
Whether it can be said she opened the city of Key West, Florida, to the Faith is not sure. She spent January 1939 there and was joined by a younger believer who spent several weeks there and was a witness to how her gentle influence touched so many hearts. We would walk each morning to the fruit shop to buy our luncheon. It was owned by a delightful Chinese family. The old grandfather usually sat in the sun, dressed in the traditional long blue Chinese gown, a black satin skull cap on his head. When he saw Elizabeth, he would rise, his hands crossed and hidden in the long sleeves, bow and repeat in singing Cantonese a verse (his son told us some saying of Confuscious). Elizabeth would bow in return and repeat some verse of Bahá’u’lláh’s or ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s—a very precious interlude.
In these days, two years before her death, her sight was failing, limbs were weak, her hands shaking. One night as she stumbled and almost fell, she clung to her companion’s arm and exclaimed, “Oh, here am I, blind and lame and halt, able to do so little, yet if that little can serve the Guardian, I am willing to live forever!”
Many of these incidents in the lives of the Greenleafs have been confirmed at one time or another by Charlotte Dakin, Elizabeth’s beloved niece, by Dorothy Baker, Doris Mackay, Gertrude Blum, and Bahiyyih Randall Ford whose parents’ home was a refuge, a source of joy and happiness weaving in and out of the lives of the Greenleafs.
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